'There is everything to play for and it’s pretty exciting'

With three games remaining in Phase 1 of the Men’s Premier Division, East Grinstead are looking to repeat their 2022 heroics, reports Rod Gilmour of The Hockey Paper.

All images by Eva Gilbert Photography.

This time last season, East Grinstead were on a magical hat-trick run of victories which ultimately sealed a place in the top six on the last day before the Christmas break.

Fast forward 12 months and the West Sussex side are facing the same task. They are currently four places and six points off sixth place and on Sunday face bottom side Brooklands Manchester University in England Hockey’s match of the weekend, before University of Nottingham and Oxted in their remaining three games.

Should they reach the top half, East Grinstead will also hope to have their continued ‘Mr EG’ to lead them into 2023 after captain Simon Faulkner missed the second half of last season through injury.

“We have the experience of the likes of Simon and Lewis Prosser, and using their experience to get us through games is really important,” said coach David Beckett. “We did the same in the last three games last season and it's a case of imparting their wisdom. We have some exciting players, but they are young and it’s about understanding the situation in front of us.

“With Simon, it’s not just his hockey. He can distribute the ball and tackle, organise and flick a great corner. He’s ‘Mr EG’ as I say to him, he’s been there a long time. He is a key man for us."

Indeed, Faulkner is into his ninth season at East Grinstead and sixth as captain outdoors. He joined the Sussex club from Loughborough University, having started out at Havant where his Olympian father, David, played and is still president today.

“It’s a fantastic place to play,” said Simon, head of hockey at Worth School. “East Grinstead is somewhere you become so invested in. You get to know everyone and help out, be it the livestream, coaching the juniors, or setting up the sound system. And we have the EG Faithful too.

“It’s not just about the men’s or women's 1s. It’s one club, which I don’t think you get at some other places. It’s one big family and it makes you want to move the club forward.”

The club moniker Faulkner has inherited follows East Grinstead great Glenn Kirkham, who retired in 2017. “He was a selfless individual,” recalls Faukner. “Whatever he did was to move the club forward. He spent three hours on the road on a Tuesday, Thursday and a weekend. He was positive and what he brought as a person was the biggest thing I took from him. He was always the first person to introduce himself to anyone new at the club and making sure everyone was okay in their life.”

This season, Faulkner has led a team which has plenty of new, young faces. And despite one win in eight, the 32-year-old believes that they have a squad good enough for a top six place.

He said: “It’s been a good challenge for us and the results don’t necessarily reflect all our performances. The new group has been refreshing and we are starting to click and gel. They have also been receptive to how the club works, its traditions and the personalities that go along with the club.”

Despite slipping to a 1-0 defeat to Reading last weekend - a result which put the Berkshire side into the top six - East Grinstead firmly believe they can still replicate their November 2021 form.

“We are into the crunch part of the season,” said Beckett, Epsom College’s head of hockey. “The format with the Play-Offs coming at the end is much better and having 12 teams really helps with no break week. With the new format it’s not the end of the world [if we don’t qualify], it’s about getting as many points as possible, but we can still do it.

“Mathematically there could be more teams who could qualify for the top six than last year. For us, it’s a massive focus against Brooklands, picking up as many points as possible and then review. From our point of view, there is everything to play for and it’s pretty exciting.”

Brooklands MU will also be no pushovers at home this weekend, as they look to pick up their first victory of the season at the ninth time of asking. “Brooklands are a very tough team to play against,” added Beckett. “They play to their strengths. For us, it’s a case of managing our emotions. By all accounts the teams who have gone up there have encountered a physical, fast game. It’s all up for grabs.”

Sunday: Brooklands MU v East Grinstead, 2:15pm